The Paso Rhone Rangers Chapter held a pouring and lunch today at Windfall Farms southeast of Paso Robles proper.  The location was absolutely stunning and the tasting circumstances were unique.  Each pair (or trio in our case) of wineries was assigned a stall (normally occupied by one of Windfall’s beautiful thoroughbred horses) and the lunch took place in the main hallway.  We can say honestly that we’ve never poured wine in a situation quite like this and that overall, the experience was both fun and memorable!

In the Vineyard:  Posts, wires, and piping for our new plantings is nearly complete.  Additionally our vineyard crew is diligently making their way among the rows to prune back our 200,000 grape producing rockstars!

In the Winery:  This week we will be bottling 2011 Sauvignon Blanc, 2011 Cotes de Paso Blanc, and 2010 Synthesis Red.  All three wines are tasting wonderful and we can’t wait to get them into the tasting room to share with you!

In the Tasting Room:  We’re finally beginning to see some cold weather but don’t let it deter you, the tasting room is warm and inviting and our current line-up is built to impress.  The next pick up party will be on March 31 for all you club members looking for a reason to visit…or all you non-club members looking for a reason (as if one is needed beyond our excellent wines!) to join.

Thanks for checking in!  We will be pouring our Rhone offerings out at Windfall Farms with the rest of the Paso Rhone Rangers Chapter.  Looking forward to seeing some of you out there!  Expect some additional photo updates this evening.

Click the photo above for an updated video of our hissy friend (warning:  the camera is a bit shakey!)

Among the flock of cats that has recently taken up residence on the Halter Ranch property, Temper has by far the most unique personality.  She lives under the chicken coop and spends the day cavorting around with our feathered ladies.  Typically she would be hissing and snarling up a storm if we got this close, but today she’s focused on her meal.  Keep an eye here for more updates on our wine, our ecosystem, and the cats!

A few of our creations have successfully (and connivingly) evaded publication…until today!  Here they are:

The Figwich

Sales Extraordinaire Sarah Forstner and Tasting Room Manager Seth Engel came up with the concept of a grilled breakfast sandwich revolving around raisin bread and fig preserves.  The result was one of our most delicious and sweet-tooth oriented paninis to date.

Ingredients: 1 jar of Fig Preserves, 2 packages of lemon infused Chevre (available in the tasting room), 1 loaf of raisin bread, 1 bunch of basil leaves, a pinch of lemon zest, salt, Robbins Family Olive Oil, and a hankering for cinnamon rolls or other sweet breakfast treats.

We applied goat cheese to one slice, fig preserves to the other slice, before adding a touch of lemon zest.  We then grilled the sandwich in a little olive oil before opening it up and adding a mini-pinch of salt and the fresh basil.

The result is a complex savory sweet breakfast treat that will tempt you daily for the rest of your life (if you are anything like us ‘ )

Sauvignon Blanc would be our ideal pairing for this, Viognier is also suited to the zesty aromatics

Revisiting Bacon

The other elusive creation is a twist upon tradition.  A simple BLT with added Avocado and Chipotle infused cheddar cheese.

Ingredients:  1 loaf of Sourdough Bread, 1 package of Bacon, 2 Avocados, 1 package of fresh arugula, 2 tomatoes, 1 package of Bravo Farms Chipotle Cheddar (available in our Tasting Room), Robbins Family Olive Oil (Ditto), hunger.

Again we baked the bacon instead of frying it to avoid smoke detector screeching and because we’ve to prefer it prepared this way for sandwiches.  We then added thinly sliced chipotle cheddar, tomatoes, bacon, and avocado to the bread for grilling.  As always we applied arugula after grilling was complete to preserve freshness.  Simple and delicious.

Syrah and Cotes de Paso both shine alongside the smoky chipotle and bacon

Check back next week for a new pairing and some healthy and vegetarian alternatives to today’s…indulgences.  Thanks for reading!

Halter Ranch will be pouring alongside the other Paso Rhone Rangers this weekend at Windfall Farms! Check the event details out here

As is our habit on Tuesdays, we combined forces to compose a grilled masterpiece to share for lunch.  Unlike our other efforts, today’s panini uses ingredients entirely from items available for purchase or collection onsite (excluding a dab of mayonnaise, arugula, and the bread we had to settle for– Ciro’s bread would take the sandwich up a notch, we just happened to be sold out today).

The following recipe is intended to pair with our 2010 Rose or 2009 Cotes de Paso, however, we encourage experimental pairings.

Ingredients: 1 healthy sprig of Fresh Rosemary, 1 wedge of Fromager D’afinnois, 1 loaf of Sourdough (or Ciro!) Bread, Robbins Family Tuscan Blend, Robbins Family Blackberry Balsamic, Bussetto Thin Sliced Prosciutto, Arugula, a dab of Mayonnaise (or your favorite flavored aioli!).

Remove rosemary from the stem and chop slightly to enhance aroma.  We’d recommend compiling the sandwich less the arugula, grilling it, and then adding the greens to preserve freshness.  The blackberry vinaigrette is also excellent as a dip for the completed sandwich.

This is one of the more aromatic and flavorful efforts we’ve produced thus far–an excellent solution for those of you out there desperately searching for a quick meal to impress on this momentous pseudo-holiday.  Check back next week for another concoction, we’ll be taking a staff poll and announcing our favorite and runner up among all the grilling recipes we’ve posted soon.  Happy V-Day Everyone!

Oenologist and Cal Poly graduate Molly Strupp works full time on our cellar team.  She arrived at Halter Ranch in May of 2011.  As a special treat this fine Sunday she has contributed a pairing from her own table:

2009 Halter Ranch Cotes de Paso with Pork Chops and Leeks in a Mustard Sauce

Molly sourced the recipe below from Epicurious

If you use commercial pork in this recipe, you might want to rub the chops with the salt mixture and let them sit for a full day in the fridge. The long rest will make the meat extra-juicy. Bone-in heirloom rib chops have ample marbling, so the meat will be naturally moist. They don’t need to rest as long with the salt rub—an hour or two should be sufficient. These are some big chops, so you might be able to share.

Yield: Makes 4 servings

4 1 1/2- to 2-inch-thick bone-in heritage pork rib chops
2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 bacon slices, coarsely chopped
Olive oil (optional)
4 cups thinly sliced leeks (white and pale green parts only; about 3 large)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup brandy
1 cup low-salt chicken broth
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh sage
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/3 cup créme fraîche or sour cream

Pat chops dry with paper towels. Mix 2 teaspoons coarse salt, thyme, rosemary, and 1 teaspoon pepper in small bowl. Sprinkle seasoning mixture on both sides of chops. Let stand at room temperature 1 to 2 hours or wrap and chill up to 1 day.

Heat heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add bacon and sauté until crisp and lightly browned. Using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to small bowl. Increase heat to medium-high. Add chops to skillet. Sear until brown, 4 to 5 minutes per side. Transfer chops to small baking sheet.

Pour off all but 3 tablespoons drippings from skillet (or add olive oil to make 3 tablespoons). Add leeks and sauté until soft, about 7 minutes. Add garlic and stir 1 minute. Add brandy, then broth and bring to boil, scraping up browned bits. Return bacon to skillet; add sage and stir to blend.

Nestle chops in leeks in skillet. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover; simmer 3 minutes. Turn chops over. Cover; simmer until thermometer inserted into thickest part of chops registers 140°F to 145°F, about 3 minutes longer. Transfer chops to platter. Tent loosely with foil to keep warm.

Spoon off any fat from cooking liquid in skillet. Boil until all liquid evaporates, about 3 minutes. Whisk in mustard, then crème fraîche (do not boil). Season with salt and pepper. Spoon over chops.

The chops for Molly’s effort came from the Halter Ranch Fair Pig (each year we sponsor a pig for the Mid State Fair Livestock competition). 

As always thank you for reading!  If you’re interested in purchasing 2009 Cotes de Paso for your own pairing experiments click the link here

To read another post featuring Molly click the photo at the top of the post or right here.